Before the match, everything was against Man Utd. They were just eliminated from the Champions League group stage with a long series of bad statistics, and lost nearly half of their matches in the Premier League after 16 rounds. Last season, also on a trip to Anfield, Erik ten Hag and his team lost miserably 0-7. That is one of the biggest stains in Man Utd history.

 

However, no “massacre” happened like many pre-match predictions. On the day, many of Liverpool’s positions played below their ability, Man Utd’s deep-lying defensive style was effective. As for neutral audiences, who were waiting for a spectacular competition between the two great rivals of English football, this was a disappointing result. On Sky Sports, former Liverpool midfielder Jamie Carragher exclaimed: “The match was terribly boring.”Coach Ten Hag probably planned to aim for a draw. Man Utd plays with four defenders, but in reality Sofyan Amrabat often drops deep to strengthen the defense. This makes it impossible for Liverpool to find space. Despite finishing a total of 34 times, the most in a match in the Premier League this season, they only sent the ball towards the target eight times and did not cause too many difficulties for goalkeeper Andre Onana.

 

A few times Mohamed Salah cut the ball for Darwin Nunez to move to the near post. But when the ball was passed back, no Liverpool player responded.

Nunez is also one of Liverpool’s worst players in this match. The Uruguayan striker was offside three times and caused controversy in the first half. He knocked Jonny Evans down and then intentionally kicked the ball away when he was penalized. Nunez received a yellow card, but according to Guardian reporter Martin Lancon, the home striker should have been red carded for two different fouls. This comment is valid if compared to Diogo Dalot receiving two consecutive yellow cards in the fourth minute of injury time of the second half for a reaction error. Angry with referee Michael Oliver’s harsh decision, the Man Utd defender threw objects on the way into the tunnel.Salah, the most expected player on the home side, did not have many opportunities to perform. In the 16th minute, he rushed to finish after Onana’s loose ball but was unsuccessful. At the end of the first half, the Egyptian striker had space in front of the penalty area but his shot lacked power. In the second half, Salah had two more shots at his favorite angles, both of which could not beat Onana.

 

In a gloomy match, the period from minute 60 to 70 witnessed rare excitement. This was the time Klopp took the risk by adding striker Cody Gakpo, while Trent Alexander-Arnold was promoted to midfielder. But this also opens up space in the middle of the field, creating conditions for Man Utd to counterattack.

In the 67th minute, from Antony’s pass, Scott McTominay made a wall for Rasmus Hojlund to run down and face Alisson Becker. But at a rather narrow shooting angle and the ball fell on his non-dominant right foot, the Danish striker shot and hit Liverpool’s goalkeeper. Hojlund’s kick was also unsuccessful, blowing away his first chance to score in the Premier League.

Liverpool also had reason to regret, when Alexander-Arnold’s long shot narrowly missed the post. In the 76th minute, Nunez and Luis Diaz stirred up trouble in the Man Utd penalty area, but both Onana and Amrabat were able to escape the danger. In the 85th minute, Liverpool demanded a penalty after Luke Shaw’s handball in the penalty area. But VAR did not take long to determine that the Man Utd defender did not have an unusual position when the situation occurred.

The 0-0 result made it impossible for Liverpool to reclaim the top of the table from Arsenal – the team that defeated Brighton 2-0 this round. Klopp and his team have 38 points, equal to Aston Villa but ranked higher thanks to better goal difference, and one point less than Arsenal. Man Utd was taken sixth place by Newcastle, but one point is probably success for Ten Hag and his team in the current context.

Liverpool will meet West Ham in the quarterfinals of the League Cup in the middle of next week and then host Arsenal in round 18. Man Utd will have a week of rest before playing at West Ham.